Fans queue overnight for new Apple phones

The new iPhone 7 and 7 Plus phones were launched only yesterday morning, but Singaporeans were already queueing overnight at authorised Apple resellers to be among the first to lay their hands on the new gadgets.

Some, like friends Prabakaran and Darryll Seow, who are self-employed, had secured their spots at the start of the line at Tampines Mall's nubox branch from as early as 10am on Wednesday.

Others, like part-time-teacher Norizan Abdullah, turned it into a family outing and went with five other family members, including her two-year-old daughter.

This is not the first time this family has queued for iPhones - they queued for three previous launches.

Others flew in from neighbouring Vietnam and Indonesia, luggage in tow, just to snag the new phones.

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Yesterday, those who had pre-ordered with telcos StarHub, Singtel and M1, and received confirmation of their appointment dates also collected their handsets.

A day before yesterday's launch, Apple said that initial quantities of the iPhone 7 Plus and the Jet Black model of the iPhone 7 had sold out worldwide on Wednesday.

It is not known how many units were made available to resellers and local telcos.

A Singtel spokesman said it expected to serve over 12,000 customers over three days.

Yesterday, customers at Bedok Mall's nubox outlet said they were told that the iPhone 7 Plus was sold out at the store by 11.30am.

So what did early birds think of their new toys and their added features?

HEADPHONE JACK

With the new phones, the headphone jack has been made redundant and headsets have to be plugged into the lightning connector that doubles as the charging point.

But this did not seem to trouble many fans.

Indonesian tourist Muhammad Iqbal Ibrahim, 24, who flew in from Jakarta, said: "I like the new look because it's simpler and neater. The phone being water-resistant also means I have less to worry about on rainy days."

HOME BUTTON

The new Home button has in-built fingerprint sensor.

With the iOS 10 update, users no longer need to slide to unlock their iPhones.

Mr Seow, 28, said: "For me, this will take time to get used to.

"It feels like a MacBook Pro trackpad and is pretty different from other phones in the market. This mechanism provides a more tactile experience."

CAMERA

For budding photographers, the 12-megapixel wide-angle and telephoto cameras as well as digital zoom of up to 10 times for the iPhone 7 Plus are a godsend.

Mr Prabakaran, 27, is impressed by the quality of the photos he took.

"Compared to my Samsung Galaxy Note 7, this captures less detail, but its depth of field is better," he said.

COLOUR

If Rose Gold was all the rage when iPhone 6 was launched, the "it" colour now is "Jet Black".

Unfortunately, many people were left disappointed when they found out that there was limited quantity for that colour and grudgingly settled for others.

Mr Shantanu Singh, a 33-year-old business owner, said: "I was eyeing the Jet Black model, but I suppose I have to make do with the Matte Black."

His sentiments were echoed by many who had to settle for Gold or Rose Gold instead.

AIRPODS

It seems that most people are not willing to part with $238 for the odd-looking, wireless earphones when they are made available here late next month.

Student Zhen Hui, 19, fears losing them because of what he describes as his "careless" nature.

But Mr Muhammad Iqbal said he is keen to try the new product.

"It is unique, unlike anything we've seen before. I am intrigued by its looks. I don't find them odd-looking," said Mr Muhammad, who says he is the "No. 1 Apple fan".